Become War and unleash your apocalyptic wrath with devastating supernatural abilities while using virtually anything within your environment as a weapon.

Destroy all who stand in your way from war-weary angelic forces to Hell's hideous demon hordes, and confront the nefarious Destroyer, the very harbinger of Armageddon.

Gain the services of Ruin, War's fiery phantom steed, blazing a trail of destruction through enemies across devastated environments.

This is the end

From Jo Madureira, comic book artist and writer, comes Darksiders, an apocalyptic action adventure game perfect for action lovers. Deceived by the forces of evil into prematurely bringing about the end of the world, you play as War - the first Horseman of the Apocalypse - standing accused of breaking the sacred law put in place by the rulers of the netherworld - the Charred Council - and inciting a battle between Heaven and Hell.

Dishonoured, imprisoned for over a century and stripped of your powers, you are forced to return to Earth in search of the truth behind the premature apocalypse and punish those responsible. Hunted by a vengeful group of Angels, you take on the forces of Hell; forge uneasy alliances with the very demons you hunt, and journey across the ravaged remains of Earth on a quest for revenge. As the story progresses the answers you seek reveal a deep conspiracy in which you have become just a mere pawn in the eternal struggle between the rulers of Heaven and Hell.

Conjuring the Horsemen

Thanks to Madureira's background in comic books, Darksiders features a truly unique art style that sets it aside from other action adventure games, while making it feel very much like a comic book that has come to life on PlayStation 3. Madureira developed the game's story, serving as a Creative Director and overseeing concepts, game designs and animation.

When creating each of the characters for the game, Madureira was the first to sketch them out, drawing up a vast amount of thumbnail options that the team then mulled over before deciding on a final look and crafting the character in 3D. In doing so, Darksiders is very much the X-Men artist's vision in terms of its look, which brilliantly transcends into the realm of videogames.

Thanks to the help of fellow comic book veteran, Joe Kelly, who worked on titles such as Marvel's Amazing Spider-Man, and assisted in crafting the storyline with Madureira, Darksiders truly is a larger-than-life comic book adventure on PlayStation. Your quest for vengeance in Darksiders starts here.

Heaven and Hell’s minions

As you play through Darksiders you encounter a huge variety of characters lurking around its desolate world. From Angels, to Demons and worse, the apocalyptic terrain you traverse plays home to some of the videogame industry's most horrifying and gigantic characters yet. One of the game's central characters, and someone who you come face to face with at the outset of the plot is The Destroyer, a skyscraper sized beast and ruler of Hell that may or may not have been responsible for triggering the apocalypse.

While The Destroyer is arguably the toughest of the villains you will face in the game, you encounter a whole host of others who pose gruelling challenges, or may aid you in your quest. The Watcher, voiced by Star Wars actor Mark Hamill, is your guide through the streets, sewers and dungeons of Darksiders; a demon bound to you by the Charred Council who helps you complete certain tasks and missions in the game by pointing you in the direction of your objectives.

Other memorable characters include The Jailer, a huge bulbous beast with a cage for a hand who can crush you with a single blow if you don't move fast enough. With the addition of armoured Angels and the remaining Horsemen, you'll come face to face with a variety of eye-catching and truly unforgettable characters by the time you've reached the end of your perilous adventure.

The battle begins

Equipped with an arsenal of weapons including swords, scythes, guns and magical attacks, all of which are unlocked as you progress through the game, you're more than prepared for revenge in Darksiders. While the majority of your time is spent on foot exploring the ruins of a great city, you also have the chance to venture into much larger plains on horseback using War's steed, Ruin. Perfect for traversing the huge open environments, Ruin can be used in boss battles and when attacking hordes of Hell and Heaven's troops.

Each weapon and magic attack you wield can be upgraded by collecting the souls of the damned from downed opponents and chests that can be smashed using the Circle button. Along with these upgrades, new combat moves can be purchased. As you begin to master the combat in Darksiders, you quickly learn that you can switch between weapons as you perform attacks, perfect for taking down some of the larger enemies in the game. Environmental objects can also be used in combat. Everything from lamp posts to cars can be picked up, swung or thrown at enemies during brawls.

One of the most intriguing weapons you'll collect later in the game is a portal gun known as The Gauntlet. This device allows you to shoot orange and blue portals, creating both an entrance and an exit, but only on specially marked areas in the environment. Once the portals have been opened you can use them to reach areas you normally wouldn't be able to access. You can even conjure up supercharged portals that allow you to hurl objects through them with more force than before.